August's edition of the 'Our Lovely Stockist's' feature is the wonderful The Plant Workshop. Read our July edition here.
With one of their retail shops based in Northallerton around 7 or 8 miles from our studio space in Bedale, this lovely Northern botanical business has achieved so so much over the last couple of years and we are really proud to supply them with our greetings cards.
Read on to find out more and support another small and independent business!
Tell me a little bit about your wonderful business…
We source the very best indoor plants, pots and accessories to showcase in our stores and online. It sounds cliche but looking after our customers is really at the heart of what we do. Whether they've popped in to chat or check out the latest plants or buys gifts - we want them to come away having enjoyed The Plant Workshop experience.
And about you…
My background is in photography and dietetics and nutrition, having worked for South Tees NHS Trust and realising I needed a creative outlet - I set up The Plant Workshop. I’m a long-term houseplant enthusiast, obsessed with good coffee, music, skincare and Springer Spaniels!
What is the story behind your business…
As a lover of indoor plants and interiors I thought ‘why not do what I love and create something exciting?'. The plan was to leave my job in the NHS and open a beautiful shop in Northallerton and this was to be the only ‘The Plant Workshop’ .
Sadly, the dreaded pandemic took hold and scuppered the plans, but I knew it wasn’t going to stop me. I’m persistent! I quickly developed an e-commerce website, stamped brown bags with a logo and the ‘doorstep- delivery service’ was born from the garden shed.
People got behind The Plant Workshop and loved having their plants delivered by us - the support was amazing and later I moved to what is now our Billingham store and warehouse. Meanwhile, the Northallerton store eventually opened and Fenwick in Newcastle approached us to open our concession - unbelievable!
What is your favourite part of being a part of an independent business?
Our loyal customers are what makes The Plant Workshop and we’re so grateful for their support. I love being part of our team who are as passionate as I am to make changes and improvements to how we work. A small independent allows for those changes to happen quickly so we’re often running at a fast-pace!
How have you adapted as a business during the pandemic?
We’ve been open and closed more times than we care to remember! Our amazing customers and team have kept us motivated and positive throughout the pandemic. We’ve been kept busy packing orders, watering plants and now, we’re finally open! It’s been a joyful experience to finally welcome everyone back in store.
What inspires you in your day to day life?
I reflect each day on what we’ve created as The Plant Workshop and that inspires me to push boundaries. I love creating and I’m inspired by our team and their ideas each day.
Tell me your favourite place to go in Yorkshire!
It’s been a while since we’ve managed to go - but we love exploring Leeds and relaxing in Laynes coffee shop near the station.
Name 3 other independent businesses that you love.
Earth Unwrapped, Northallerton
Lillian Daph, Saltburn by the Sea
The Waiting Room Vegetarian Restaurant, Eaglescliffe
We would love to hear about your favourite independent businesses, pop over to our Instagram and let us know!
Check back in September for our next feature.
Big love,
Plewsy x